MUMBAI: Shafali Verma and Deepti Sharma starred with both bat and ball to propel India to their first Women’s World Cup title with a 52-run win over South Africa on Sunday.
Hosts India posted 298-7 and then bowled South Africa out for 246 with spinner Sharma taking five wickets in front of a sell-out home crowd at Mumbai’s DY Patil Stadium.
Verma top-scored with 87 and Sharma hit 58 off as many balls as India posted a challenging total after they were put in to bat in a final delayed two hours by rain.
South Africa skipper Laura Wolvaardt hit a valiant 101 but her departure off Sharma raised the noise at the 45,000-capacity stadium, which had turned into a sea of blue.
Sharma took down Nadine de Klerk, for 18, as the final wicket as Harmanpreet Kaur’s India celebrated with the jubilant crowd inside the ground and millions outside in the cricket-mad nation.
The Indian women triumphed at the third attempt after finishing runners-up in 2005 and 2017.
Sharma struck key blows with her off-spin including Annerie Dercksen, who hit 35 in a 61-run partnership with in-form opener Wolvaardt.
But it was Sharma’s double-wicket over to dismiss Wolvaardt and then Chloe Tryon, for nine, that took India to the brink of victory.
Kaur’s ploy of giving the ball to Verma, an opening batter and a part-time off-spinner, in the 20th over proved key as the youngster removed Sune Luus.
Verma dislodged Marizanne Kapp in the next over to plunge South Africa into deeper trouble but Wolvaardt kept South Africa in the game until her departure in the 42nd over.
Verma, who was brought into the team for the semi-final after fellow opener Pratika Rawal went down injured, came out roaring with the bat.
She put on 104 runs with Smriti Mandhana (45) to lay solid foundations at a venue that has produced big runs, including India’s record chase of 339 in the semi-final against Australia.
Sharma then added valuable runs with her 18th ODI fifty to crank up the pressure on South Africa despite three wickets for Ayabonga Khaka.